Some would say these are non-issues for this office; however, I think these issues will make or break a country. They are very important moral issues and should be considered when choosing a president.

Jeb Bush

On Abortion. Bush advanced an overtly anti-abortion agenda during his years as governor of Florida. As governor, Bush signed a parental notification act into law and supported the creation of a “Choose Life” specialty license plate. In 2003, Bush attracted national media attention after his administration sought the appointment of a guardian for the fetus of a developmentally disabled rape victim, a move which “angered women’s rights groups and reignited the debate over abortion in Florida.” In 2005, Bush sought to block a 13-year-old pregnant girl who had lived in a state-licensed group home from obtaining an abortion; a judge ruled against the state, and Bush decided not to appeal further. Bush supports the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act which would ban abortion after 20 weeks, making exceptions for the life of the mother, rape, or incest. Bush supports the defunding of Planned Parenthood (which currently only uses federal money for non-abortion services).

On Homosexuality. Bush has explicitly opposed same-sex marriage for years, believing that the issue of same-sex marriage should be decided by the states rather than by the federal government and that it should not be a constitutional right. He holds that businesses should have the right to refuse to provide services for same-sex couples on religious grounds. In January 2015, Bush signaled openness to some form of recognition for same-sex relationships, in a statement issued after Florida began allowing same-sex marriage following a court ruling. In the statement, Bush said: “We live in a democracy, and regardless of our disagreements, we have to respect the rule of law. I hope that we can also show respect for the good people on all sides of the gay and lesbian marriage issue – including couples making lifetime commitments to each other who are seeking greater legal protections and those of us who believe marriage is a sacrament and want to safeguard religious liberty.” Bush has stated that his views were informed by his Catholic faith. Bush said that “irrespective of” the U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, “we need to be stalwart supporters of traditional marriage.” Bush also stated “To imagine how we are going to succeed in our country unless we have committed family life, committed child-centered family system, is hard to imagine.”

Scott Walker

On Abortion. In 2010 Walker told the editorial board of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he opposed abortion, without exception for rape or incest. Regarding his stance on abortion, he has stated: “I don’t apologize for that, but I don’t focus on that; I don’t obsess with it.”In a TV ad during his 2014 campaign for re-election Walker stated that he is “pro-life“, and pointed to legislation he signed that leaves “the final decision to a woman and her doctor”. In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel a few weeks before the November 2014 election, Walker declined to answer directly when asked if abortion should be prohibited after 20 weeks. Walker has since indicated that he would sign a state law banning abortion after 20 weeks, including in cases of rape or incest.

On Homosexuality. Walker voted for Wisconsin’s constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, both as a legislator and as a voter. In September 2014, Walker said he was defending the amendment. When the U.S. Supreme Court subsequently rejected the appeals of five states, including Wisconsin, in October 2014, allowing same-sex marriages to continue, Walker stated: “I think it’s resolved.” In April, 2015, in New Hampshire Walker said marriage is “defined as between a man and a woman”, and in Iowa said a federal constitutional amendment allowing states to define marriage was reasonable.

Marco Rubio

On Abortion. Rubio identifies as pro-life. He strongly opposes Roe v. Wade, and has stated that the “right to life is a fundamental one that trumps virtually any other right I can imagine”.

Ben Carson

On Abortion. My entire professional life has been devoted to saving and enhancing lives. Thus, the thought of abortion for the sake of convenience does not appeal to me. Many of us turn a blind eye to the wanton slaughter of millions of helpless human babies who are much more sophisticated than some of the other creatures, when nothing is at stake other than the convenience of one or both parents.

On Homosexuality. In March 2013, Carson described his views about same-sex marriage on Hannity, saying: “Marriage is between a man and a woman. No group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA, be they people who believe in bestiality, it doesn’t matter what they are. They don’t get to change the definition.” Carson’s comments drew criticism for using “gays” in the same sentence as pedophiles and practitioners of bestiality. A group of Hopkins students petitioned that he be replaced as the university’s commencement speaker. Several days later, Carson withdrew as Hopkins’s commencement speaker and apologized, saying that “the examples were not the best choice of words”, adding that the Bible “says we have an obligation to love our fellow man as ourselves, and I love everybody the same—all homosexuals”. He said on CNN that he loved all people, whether gay or straight. Carson added, “I was trying to say that as far as marriage was concerned, it has traditionally been between a man and a woman and no one should be able to change that.”

Mike Huckabee

On Abortion. Mike Huckabee is strongly opposed to abortion, including in cases of rape or incest. He has stated that abortion should be legal only when the life of the mother is at risk. He believes that it would “most certainly” be a good day for America if Roe v. Wade were repealed.

On Homosexuality. Huckabee stated in 1992, “I feel homosexuality is an aberrant, unnatural, and sinful lifestyle, and we now know it can pose a dangerous public health risk”. He stuck by those comments in December 2007 when asked if homosexuality is sinful. He replied, “Well I believe it would be — just like lying is sinful and stealing is sinful. There are a lot of things that are sinful. It doesn’t mean that a person is a horrible person. It means that they engage in behavior that is outside the norms of those boundaries of our traditional view of what’s right and what’s wrong. So, I think that anybody who has, maybe a traditional worldview of sexuality would classify that as an unusual behavior that is not traditional and that would be outside those bounds.” Huckabee has voiced opposition to both same-sex marriage and civil unions. He says that Americans should respect gay couples, but no gay adoptions should take place. He signed legislation outlawing same-sex marriage in Arkansas.

Rand Paul

On Abortion. Paul is opposed to abortion. However, in a 2013 interview he said that he would not oppose abortion in some individual cases involving a woman’s health. He opposes the use of federal, state, or local government funds for abortion. During a 2014 CNN interview with Pete Hamby, he said that he supported the use of medications (such as the morning-after pill) to prevent pregnancy because Plan B is basically “taking two birth control pills in the morning and two in the evening and I’m not opposed to that”. Describing himself as “100% pro life,” Paul has said, “I believe life begins at conception and it is the duty of our government to protect this life…. I have stated many times that I will always vote for any and all legislation that would end abortion or lead us in the direction of ending abortion.” He has been a sponsor or cosponsor of several legislative measures to effectively ban virtually all abortions by recognizing a legal right to life of human embryos from the moment of fertilization. Paul favors a federal ban on abortion, but he has said that until the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade or the nation passes a constitutional amendment to ban abortions nationwide, the legality of abortion should be left to the individual states to decide without federal involvement.

On Homosexuality. Rand Paul does not endorse same-sex marriage, but he supports marriage contracts for same-sex couples. He stated: “You could have both traditional marriage, which I believe in. And then you could also have the neutrality of the law that allows people to have contracts with another.” Paul’s staffers say he believes the issue should be left to the states to decide. He has said he thought that the Supreme Court’s ruling in United States v. Windsor, which struck down the portion of the Defense of Marriage Act that defined marriage at a federal level (as between a man and a woman), was appropriate.

Ted Cruz

On Abortion. Cruz is pro-life, with an exception only when pregnancy endangers the mother’s life.

On Homosexuality. Cruz supports legally defined marriage as only “between one man and one woman,” but believes that the legality of same-sex marriage should be left to each state to decide. On February 10, 2015, Cruz re-introduced the State Marriage Defense Act. Cruz opposes participation in gay pride marches, criticizing Dallas’ Republican mayor Tom Leppert, stating “When a mayor of a city chooses twice to march in a parade celebrating gay pride that’s a statement and it’s not a statement I agree with.”

Chris Christie

On Abortion. In his early political career, Christie was pro-choice stating in an interview that “I would call myself … a kind of a non-thinking pro-choice person, kind of the default position”. Later on Christie evolved his position to be against abortion: “I am pro-life. Hearing the strong heartbeat of my unborn daughter 14 years ago at 13 weeks gestation had a profound effect on me and my beliefs.” He has stated, with respect to his opposition to abortion, that he would not use the governor’s office to “force that down people’s throats”, but does favor restrictions on abortion such as banning partial-birth abortion, requiring parental notification, and imposing a 24-hour waiting period.

On Homosexuality. Christie believes that homosexuality is innate, having said “If someone is born that way, it’s very difficult to say then that that’s a sin.” On August 19, 2013, Christie signed a bill outlawing gay conversion therapy in children, making New Jersey the second state to institute such a law. The law was challenged in the courts, with Christie, in his official capacity as governor, named an appellee. In September 2014, a panel of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the law, saying it did not violate free speech or religious rights. Christie has said that he favored New Jersey’s law allowing same-sex couples to form civil unions, but would veto any bill legalizing same-sex marriage in New Jersey, saying, “I also believe marriage should be exclusively between one man and one woman…. If a bill legalizing same sex marriage came to my desk as Governor, I would veto it.” He has expressed concern with the recognition of civil unions, however, and has strongly advocated for more stringent laws to protect and strengthen civil unions.

Donald Trump

On Abortion. At the 2011 CPAC conference, Trump stated that he is “pro-life”

On Homosexuality. Donald Trump does not support same-sex marriage.

Rick Perry

On Abortion. Perry has expressed support for amending the Constitution to set a nationwide policy on social issues, by prohibiting abortion and same-sex marriage.

On Homosexuality. Perry opposes the legal recognition of same-sex marriages, and supported the 2005 ballot proposition which amended the Texas constitution by defining marriage as “only a union between a man and a woman” and prohibiting the state from creating or recognizing “any legal status identical or similar to marriage”. In 2011, after New York legalized same-sex marriage, Perry stated that it was their right to do so under the principle of states’ rights delineated in the 10th Amendment. A spokesman later reiterated Perry’s support for a federal constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, saying that position was not inconsistent since an amendment would require approval by three-fourths of the states. In his first book, On My Honor, published in 2008, Perry drew a parallel between homosexuality and alcoholism, writing that he is “no expert on the ‘nature versus nurture’ debate,” but that gays should simply choose abstinence.

Rick Santorum

On Abortion. Santorum considered himself pro-choice on abortion throughout his early life, but changed to a pro-life position by 1990 when he ran for Congress.

On Homosexuality. In his 2005 book, It Takes a Family, Santorum advocated for a society oriented toward “family values” and centered on monogamous, heterosexual relationships, marriage, and child-raising. He opposes same-sex marriage, saying the American public and their elected officials should decide on these “incredibly important moral issues”, rather than the Supreme Court, which consists of “nine unelected, unaccountable judges.”

3 Responses to Republican Party U. S. Presidential Candidates, 2016: What Are Their Views On Abortion and Homosexuality?

FYI … you copied Cruz’s stance on homosexuality to Christie’s stance on abortion.
I think that it would be safe to say that most of the Republican candidates agree on these issues. It’s obvious who doesn’t (Christie), but the other issues will come to play in selecting the one: national security; the illegal immigration issue, Obamacare, taxes, the economy, etc.
Thanks for the info! 🙂